sodfa صدفة
Tunisian Derja · noun
“sodfa” (صدفة) is a noun in Tunisian Derja meaning chance, coincidence.
Meanings
- chance, coincidence
- by chance (bes-sodfa)
Usage
Very common feminine noun. It is used mostly in the adverbial phrase "bes-sodfa" (by chance): "tla9ina bes-sodfa" (we bumped into each other by chance). On its own, it also serves to comment on a coincidence: "sodfa!" or "ya sodfa!" (what a coincidence!). "Mouch sodfa" (it's no coincidence) often comes up to imply that something was intended or arranged. The plural sodaf is rare. To say "just in case", sodfa is not used; one says "ken" or "l7ad ma" instead.
Example
تلاقينا بالصدفة في السوق
tla9ina bes-sodfa fes-sou9
“We bumped into each other by chance at the market.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “sodfa” but also “sedfa”, “soudfa” and “sudfa”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Type “sodfa” on the Arabic keyboard
In Moroccan Darija
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “chance, coincidence”: sodfa in Moroccan.
In Algerian Darja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Algerian Darja, where it means “chance, coincidence”; “by chance (b sodfa)”: sodfa in Algerian.